Vernon news
IPE lived up to its ‘Udderly Awesome’ theme
“ONE OF THE BEST FAIRS EVER” ARMSTRONG – Attendance at the Interior Provincial Exhibition, which wrapped up yesterday in Armstrong, was the highest it’s been in years. IPE general manager Bryan Burns says over the five days of the fair a total of 158,238 people passed through the turnstiles, including 38,673 on the last day...
UPDATE: Firefighters extinguish house fire in Vernon
VERNON – Investigators are looking for the exact cause of a fire, which started in the kitchen of a home on Alexis Park Drive in Vernon on Sunday. Vernon Fire Department Capt. Reinhard Mann says crews arrived at the home in the 3900-block of Alexis Park Drive at about 2 p.m., Sept. 6, to find...
Vernon RCMP bust dial-a-dope operation
VERNON – Three people from the lower mainland have been arrested and a large quantity of cocaine and heroin seized in connection with a RCMP investigation into a drug trafficking operation in Vernon. RCMP say a 17-year-old boy was arrested in his vehicle near the corner of 32 Street and 43 Avenue, Sept. 2, and...
Drive B.C. adds eight new highway webcams to help you plan your trip
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – Just in time for winter, Drive B.C. has installed eight more highway cams between West Kelowna and Kaleden, and in the Merritt area to help drivers assess road conditions and traffic. The cameras include four south of West Kelowna on Highway 97 and Highway 97C, and three near Kaleden in the South Okanagan....
Have your say on the future of Vernon’s airport
VERNON - Vernon residents are invited to have a say on the future of the local airport. The city is reviewing plans for the airport over the next 20 years and wants to hear from residents and businesses at an upcoming open house Sept. 17. It’s all part of a project to develop a new...
Candy apples, picnic tables and cows: A by-the-numbers count of all things IPE
ARMSTRONG - Ever wondered such things as how many volunteer hours go into the Armstrong fair, or how many mini-donuts get churned out during it? We’ve got the answers to your burning questions below. The numbers behind the five-day Interior Provincial Exhibition truly are staggering. A tremendous number of volunteers, animals and vendors make the...
Vernon homeless camp growing after motel evictions
VERNON - A Vernon homeless camp has grown in the days following an eviction order at the Green Valley Motel, according to shelter workers. Tenants had to be out of the motel by Sept. 1, and while a small number sought lodging at the Gateway Shelter, it appears others have turned to the street, John...
ELECTION 2015: What you didn’t know about North Okanagan-Shuswap Green Party candidate Chris George
VERNON - This might come as a surprise, but North Okanagan-Shuswap Green Party candidate Chris George used to vote right wing. But the longtime businessman always felt like something was missing from that end of the political spectrum. When he started learning more about the Green Party platform he realized it was fiscally responsible, while...
Hazardous waste? Watch for the North Okanagan’s new Eco Depot
VERNON - If you need a place to dump hazardous waste, say good-bye to the annual round-ups in the North Okanagan and hello to the new Eco-Depot. The facility is expected to open this fall, and will offer residents the first year-round household hazardous waste drop off centre in the region. For the past decade,...
Cooler weather sticking around for Okanagan long weekend
OKANAGAN - The last long weekend of the summer is upon us but Mother Nature doesn’t seem to be ready to join the celebration this year. For the most part September kicked off with temperatures just below seasonal normals of 22 Celsius and the Labour Day long weekend will be much the same. Environment Canada...
Filmed in the Okanagan: TV show focuses on traditional First Nation food
OKANAGAN – A TV series about gathering and cooking wild food will air on the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network next week. And it was filmed in the Okanagan. Quest Outwest: Wild Food follows Syilx storyteller and Penticton resident Tracey Kim Bonneau as she hunts and forages around the Okanagan looking for traditional ingredients she prepares...
Whooping cough still a concern as school approaches
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - With the first day of school approaching, parents should remember a recent spike in potentially fatal whooping cough has only just began to drop. “We have been in communciations with schools informing parents about communicable diseases in general and the fact we have been observing increased cases of whooping cough,” Dr. Kamran Golmohammadi...
Stolen truck leads Mounties to large Shuswap drug operation
SHUSWAP - Police busted a massive drug trafficking operation in the Shuswap over the weekend, all thanks to a stolen truck that led them straight to it. Salmon Arm RCMP received a report of a stolen F350 with a camper on it Saturday, Aug. 29, and soon got wind of a truck matching the description...
Vernon bar taking things in a new direction
VERNON - A Vernon restaurant and sports bar is turning its focus from those who go out, to those who stay in. Monashee’s Bar & Grill on 30 Avenue in downtown Vernon will welcome patrons for a pint for the last time this weekend, but it’s not turning its back on them completely. Owner Steve...
Drivers beware: Increased enforcement of school zones next week
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - RCMP are sending a message to the province’s drivers reminding them September is back to school time. Police are asking drivers to remember their ABCs and if they don’t, they will certainly help teach them a lesson, according to a RCMP media release. The driver’s ABC’s are: A for attention, B to be...